New user: FT8 many more stations heard than are hearing me

[G Mg]

On 20m and 40m FT8, I'm consistently finding that I hear many more stations than those that hear my signal. In the last few hours I've heard almost 700 stations on 20m, yet only 26 have heard me. Is this a normal ratio for most users?

I haven't made a single QSO in a week, after making a few dozen when I first began and I'm wondering if my rig is transmitting effectively. Details: new IC-7300 up to 100W, DX-CC fan dipole in inverted-V, RG-8x, WSJT-X, transmitting where band waterfall is quiet. SWR very close to 1:1 on 20m with builtin tuner. 

Is it a case of inflated expectations, or is something wrong with my equipment or setup?

Gary

KD2UEB 

[Tom Paratore]

Make sure your time is synced properly. 

Windows time is no good. 

Check your time at time.is

I use meinberg ntp.

Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 22, 2020, at 3:30 PM, G Mg <gmgli...@gmail.com> wrote:

On 20m and 40m FT8, I'm consistently finding that I hear many more stations than those that hear my signal. In the last few hours I've heard almost 700 stations on 20m, yet only 26 have heard me. Is this a normal ratio for most users?

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[G Mg]

Good point, but I'm sync'd using NetTime. 

Same ratio: I hear 1400 stations, 60 hear me.

[Steve Meuse]

Under display options, turn on "hide faint monitors".

-Steve

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-Steve

[G Mg]

Did that, too, Steve. No change. Still receiving far better than I seem to be transmitting. 

[Tim Keats]

Do you have a separate receiver which you can use to monitor your transmissions?  You should hear a pure tone with no distortion. I'm wondering if you have the same problem as me, a hum on the signal coming from somewhere, which makes it difficult to decode. I've not fixed my problem yet, still working on it!

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[Marv Russell]

If your antenna is close to the ground you may be transmitting at a high enough angle that your reach is limited. 

 Also the inverted V antenna is not a truly omni directional antenna when it transmits even though it receives signals off the lobes.

I have both a long wire and a vertical antenna and notice a difference in both transmitted and received patterns during different times of the day.

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[Mike]

Gary - 

You might want to ask FT-8 operating and technical questions on the WSJT-X support forum:

https://wsjtx.groups.io/g/main 

73,

Mike - N8MSA 

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[Uwe, DG2YCB]

Gary,

to me it looks like something is wrong with your setup. Look at the attached PSKPeporter map. You are receiving stations from nearly all continents, but your signal is received by others with -20 or even -24 dB at only 1500 km distance. Please check the following:

- What is your true output power when transmitting FT8? Is it really 100W or MUCH less? Always set the TX power at your rig to maximum and reduce transmit power only via the audio level.

- Is the audio level adjusted properly? Set your IC-7300's display to PWR, set WSJT-Xs PWR slider to zero and press the tune button. Outpot power should be zero. (If it is not zero there is something wrong with either the power supply or with the radio). Increase the PWR slider until you reach maximum output of your rig (about 100 W). Now decrease the PWR slider to that point where you reach about 90 to 95% of your maximum TX power (= 90-95 W). This is the correct setting aof your audio level.

- In case it is not possible to reach 95 W check settings of Windows' sound mixer. In case you were originally using a 32-bit version of WSJT-X (or JTDX) and later installed a 64-bit version, Windows's sound mixer must be increased by more than 10 dB! I've seen a couple of OMs who didn't do that and who due to that were transmitting with only 5 W or so. Please check that.

- How good is your reach when operating SSB? Is it the same or is it better?

Hope that helps you.

73 de Uwe, DG2YCB

[G Mg]

Thanks for all the great suggestions. 

I've set the rig power to 100%. On WSJT-X (v 2.2.2, the only version I've ever installed) pressing the "TUNE" button shows nothing on the 7300's power meter, whether the slider is fully down or fully up. Same on Win8 and Mac machines. 

I've made only a couple of QSOs on SSB. When I listen to a nearby station on kiwisdr, I can very barely hear my signal, and then only on 80 meters. The rig's power meter does rise to 25-50 with voice modulation, but I get only blanking on a little shortwave receiver. I don't have a wattmeter. 

I've done multiple factory resets. I have 100 ft of RG-8x to a DX-CC inverted-V with center at 30 feet and ends 8 feet off the ground - not ideal but should be doing better than this. I replaced the coax with no improvement.

All of this leads me to believe there's something wrong with the TX part of the IC-7300.

[Tom Paratore]

Is there a current meter on your power supply?

If so, how much current are you drawing when you tx?

If there isn’t a current meter on your power supply, do you have a fluke meter or the like with dc current measuring? 

If so, put it inline and see how much current you draw when you tx.

This will help you determine your output power.

At 100watts you should draw more than 12 amps. Closer to 15.

Sent from my iPhone

On Aug 25, 2020, at 8:41 AM, G Mg <gmgli...@gmail.com> wrote:

Thanks for all the great suggestions. 

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[G Mg]

DC ammeter inline: Rx 0.9A, Tx draws 4-6 A , regardless of rig's RF power setting, 0 to 100%. (at 0%??)

[Dave R]

Do you have a stand alone power meter and dummy load? A relative field strength meter? These are bare essentials. In emergencies a good truck stop will have crude versions of the above. You can also use a 100W incandescent lamp. 73

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[Dave R]

please see below 

[Uwe, DG2YCB]

Gary,
You said nothing is shown on your 7300's power meter when you are pressing the "TUNE" button. That clearly indicates that it is something VERY wrong with your audio settings.
Do you have your IC-7300 switched to USB-D? (Not USB.) How much is set at USB MOD level?
Here is a tutorial which might help you to check your settings: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsVoTohP87Q
Here are K5TMT's settings: https://k5tmt.com/2019/09/07/wsjt-x-settings-for-the-ic-7300/,
and here are NO5V's settings: https://bonoradio.files.wordpress.com/2017/05/icom-7300-setup-with-wsjt-x.pdf.

Which OS are you using? Windows? If yes, is WSJT-X's output set to the right soundcard? What if you connect it for testing to the soundcard driving your PC's loudspeaker. Do you hear the tones coming from WSJT-X or not?

73 de Uwe, DG2YCB

[th51...@gmail.com]

i also see more stations than see me onft8

i note the posts about power levels , i am using a qrp rig with 1.5 weatts out - is that the reason

terry gm4dso

[Mark Wild]

Terry, yes it’s very likely the case.  If the average station is using 100W then you are about 17db down in terms of signal strength.  

On 6m I use 5W and my average received report compared to the one I sent is -15db so I know it’s not worth calling a station that I am receiving at -10 or less. That is unless I know they are QRP or I know the propagation is improving signal strengths.

Make sure you find a clear slot to transmit on (not the default) and always hold your TX frequency to increase your chances of success.  Keep an eye on the excellent PSK Repoter to see where you are being received to give you an idea if it’s worth trying to call the other station.

No different to others modes, QRP on FT8 needs lots of luck, patience and persistence.  I would also suggest building experience on quieter bands first (eg top band, 60m, 15m, 10m) but best to see stats pages on PSK Reporter to get a good view of activity.

It’s also important to make sure you are driving the correct audio levels to give you the best chance of being heard and being decided. 

The FT8 bible but it’s a very comprehensive read - https://www.g4ifb.com/FT8_Hinson_tips_for_HF_DXers.pdf

Mark, G6DDX

[Tsepkovsky Sergey]

  We invite you to visit our website   http://us5loc2014.at.ua/  


US5LOC

вс, 6 сент. 2020 г. в 00:53, Mark Wild <mfwi...@gmail.com>:

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[Johan Visagie]

Reduce the power , maybe ur 100 watts is distorted? use the audio drive from ur PC into radio to drive it , ALC must just just lift, Many stations like to run high power and it causes TERRIBLE splatter on the band , i use 40watts into dipoles and beams and have made 81149 contacts so cant see need for higher power. 

So many Crocodile stations ... All mouth no ears .

ZS6AF Johan

[PY2WD]

 Bom dia amigo, muito obrigado pelas dicas vou verificar se a alguma coisa errada mais meu rádio é QRP a potência máxima do meu rádio é 5w e o ALC está baixo, em torno de 9 vou verificar muito obrigado. 73

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[Johan Visagie]

hi

sorry dont understand language 

ZS6AF

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[Charles Suckling]

Try Google translate:

 Good morning friend, thank you very much for the tips. I will check if there is anything wrong, but my radio is QRP. The maximum power of my radio is 5w and the ALC is low, around 9. I will check. Thank you very much. 73

Charlie DL3WDG

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[Johan Visagie]

Hi sir 

i started with 1 watt on FT8 and made a few thousand contacts on all the HF bands . So nothing wrong with QRP .But some stations TX 1000 watts so they dont hear us normal low power stations.

ZS6AF

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[Johan Visagie]

ITS because the typical FT8 user uses a linear , transmits much much higher power than u . YES some IDIOTS TX 1 kw plus .

They are heard 5 times around the planet while my 40 watts only goes halfway . 

ZS6AF